A LARGE batch of paracetamol 500mg tablets has been discovered with a foul odour at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), but neither the hospital nor supplier – New GPC — is taking responsibility.

The disclosure was made one day after the Public Health Ministry disclosed that the New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation (New GPC), a major supplier of pharmaceuticals, drugs and medical supplies, was in the process of replacing 14 bottles of life-saving ‘soda lime’ which were discovered to be defective. On Tuesday, the ministry’s Public Relations Officer, Terrence Esseboom, disclosed that a large percentage of the 249,000 Paracetamol 500mg tablets, which had replaced the previous batch, now has a foul odour. The first batch, which was also supplied by the New GPC, had fungus on the tablets.

According to Esseboom, the tablets were delivered on April 19 and 20, and by April 25, the GPHC had little choice but quarantine 186,000 of the tablets. But this figure has since increased to 231,000, following complaints from a number of health centres and pharmacies, including the Kitty, Industry and Campbellville Health Centres, along with the Enmore Polyclinic. Questioned whether GPHC’s storage facility maybe the problem, Esseboom responded in the negative. “The pharmacist at the GPHC is maintaining that this is a manufacturing flaw and not a storage problem at the hospital,” he said.

PERFECT SAMPLES
But, the New GPC Manager Ravie Ramcharitar, said the pharmaceutical corporation had tested its products not once, but twice, and the results were all negative.
“This is the second incident,” Ramcharitar posited, while explaining to this newspaper that the first batch of paracetamol was imported and supplied to GPHC by New GPC. He said when the hospital filed a complaint that the tablets bore signs of fungus, they were recalled and the manufacturer was informed.

According to Ramcharitar, when the retention samples were tested by the manufacturer, they were “perfect” and came up negative for fungal growth.
Nevertheless, Ramcharitar said when the replacement was done, the hospital was supplied with paracetamol produced locally by New GPC. To the company’s surprise, another complaint was filed by the hospital, this time with claims that the tablets have a foul odour, Ramcharitar said.

He said similar tests were done on the retention samples, but again came up negative. The general manager said it is clear that the problem lies with GPHC’s storage facility, noting that similar products were sold to other hospitals and pharmacies without any complaints. “This thing is weird. Something got to be wrong with the conditions at GPHC. It was the same problem with the Soda Lime, we contacted another hospital that we supply and the soda lime is quite ok, there is no problem,” Ramcharitar posited.
“The next step is to ask them to check their storage system.”

Though the New GPC has agreed to replace the 231,000 paracetamol 500mg tablets, the general manager said it will do so in parts. The first batch was scheduled to be delivered on Tuesday. “We will only give them a part and as they use, we will supply more,” he posited.
Meanwhile, New GPC is in the process of replacing the 14 bottles of soda lime. The replacement batch is in transit by airfreight and is expected to arrive in less than two weeks.

The initial batch of soda lime, which is used for the absorption of carbon monoxide to help patients breathe while they are under anesthesia, was discovered defective after the theatre staff at GPHC reported that the soda lime had deteriorated from granular to powdered form. The 14 bottles were part of a batch of 24 that was supplied to the hospital on February 21, 2017, on a purchase order.

In a statement, the pharmaceutical corporation had stated clearly that Soda Lime comes in granulated form, but can go bad if improperly stored or handled and will become crushed or powdered if the bottle is shaken.